Wells Fargo ordered to pay $3.7B by CFPB for mismanagement of auto loans

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is ordering Wells Fargo Bank to pay more than $2B in redress to consumers and a $1.7B civil penalty for legal violations across several of its largest product lines. The bank’s illegal conduct led to billions of dollars in financial harm to its customers and, for thousands of customers, the loss of their vehicles and homes. Consumers were illegally assessed fees and interest charges on auto and mortgage loans, had their cars wrongly repossessed, and had payments to auto and mortgage loans misapplied by the bank. Wells Fargo also charged consumers unlawful surprise overdraft fees and applied other incorrect charges to checking and savings accounts. Under the terms of the order, Wells Fargo will pay redress to the over 16 million affected consumer accounts, and pay a $1.7B fine, which will go to the CFPB’s Civil Penalty Fund, where it will be used to provide relief to victims of consumer financial law violations. "Wells Fargo’s rinse-repeat cycle of violating the law has harmed millions of American families," said CFPB Director Rohit Chopra. "The CFPB is ordering Wells Fargo to refund billions of dollars to consumers across the country. This is an important initial step for accountability and long-term reform of this repeat offender." Reference Link